A Panamanian court has declared a port contract held by a port company invalid. Hongkong President José Raúl Mulino assured that canal traffic would not be disrupted.

A court ruled on Thursday that a port concession granted to Panamanian Ports Co., a subsidiary of Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison Holdings, was unconstitutional. This decision is welcomed by the United States and was criticized by Beijing, according to the Associated Press.

“Beijing behaved violently. Trump comes on China expert Zhang Guodeng told Fox News Digital in an email. “The president of the United States just showed the Chinese who is boss in the Western Hemisphere.”

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Aerial view of Rodman Harbor in Panama City, taken on January 30, 2026. (Martin Benetti/AFP via Getty Images)

“President Trump drove Nicolas Maduro and his wife out of Caracas, ending China’s influence in Venezuela,” Zhang added. “With the end of Panama’s Hutchison Port concession, countries are getting the message that Trump is determined to drive China out of the region and they should stand with the US president.”

Mulino said on Friday that port operations at both ends of the canal would continue as the ruling is enforced, adding that the Panama Maritime Authority would work with Panama Ports to keep the canal open. Port operationthe Associated Press reported.

Once the concessions are officially terminated, a local subsidiary of Danish shipping giant Moller-Maersk will temporarily operate the ports while the government launches a tender process for new long-term concessions, Mulino said.

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Panamanian President José Raul Mulino delivers a speech during the swearing-in ceremony at the Atlapa Convention Center in Panama City on July 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Delacroix)

this court decision An audit by Panama’s auditor general found irregularities in a 25-year concession extension granted in 2021, the Associated Press reported.

The ruling is consistent with long-standing U.S. concerns about China’s presence near the Panama Canal.

Limiting Beijing’s influence in the region has been a priority for the Trump administration, and Panama is the U.S. secretary of state’s first overseas stop this year Marco Rubiothe Associated Press reported.

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio appears before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on January 28, 2026. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)

“this USA We are encouraged by the Panamanian Supreme Court’s recent ruling that port concessions to China are unconstitutional,” Rubio posted on X on Friday.

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Panamanian Ports said it had not been formally notified of the ruling, which it believed lacked legal basis and warned it could harm thousands of Panamanian families and undermine legal certainty. The Hong Kong government also rejected the ruling, the Associated Press reported.